Conference 7.286::golf

Tavo,

There definitely is not the amount of golf near Valbonne as there is in Stow.
I found one nice course near OPIO that's about 1 year old now which is well
worth playing. I'll fetch the name and post it here.

I spent a week there, and felt fortunate to find this place. I would think it
is even tougher to play in Geneva.

Eric

    The answer as to what kind of golf you can find in the Geneva area is..
    
    Expensive !
    
    Bring plenty of $$$$
    
    Mike

    tavo,
    
    there are some nice couses in and around valbonne, i've played
    connes-mougins which is in mougins (about 400ff), great course, they
    play the french open there, i've also played the monte-carlo gc,
    another great course, they play the monte-carlo open there, sits on top
    of monte-carlo again around 400ff, also played golf du val martin a 9
    hole course in valbonne, not very nice, there is another 18 hole course
    in valbonne called valbonne cc, the price was also high, there are
    other courses in the area that i've heard were very nice, as the
    previous note said, bring lots of money
    
    be careful playing over there, damn yardage is in meters and it's all
    to the front of the greens, you need a caculator to figure things out
    
    peter

    Re:        <<< Note 1384.2 by SHIRE::DAWKES "Having a hack of a time !" >>>

    Mike,
    
    Can you  give  me any idea of how expensive?  Is it in the price that
    Peter mentioned in .3? (400ff =about $70 US).
    
    It is expensive but if these  are  championship courses then they may
    be worth that much.  And compared to paying $30 at Stow Acres here in
    Mass.  on weekends, that could translate to playing about every other
    week, which I can live with.
    
    Thanks for the replies
    
    Tavo

    Tavo,
    
    	For the courses in France FFr.250 is a normal weekday price and
    FFr.400-500 at the weekend, if you can get on !
    
    	There are a number of courses which accept day visitors but usually
    only during the week. Otherwise you have to become a member for which
    there is a joining fee, of the order of SFr.40,000 for a new good
    course rising to almost any figure you can think of.
    
    	Golf is VERY popular so that the course owners have enough willing
    victims to maintain high prices. There is some sign of the market
    improving for the players but we are not there yet !
    
    	The other alternative is to live near the French boarder so that
    you can get to a course just out of reach of Geneva prices; for the
    moment.
    
    	The course "La Bresse" near Bourg-en-Bresse is well worth a visit
    but an hours ride from Geneva !
    
    	Good Luck,
    
    	Mike

The course I played is about one year old now. The previous replies have
good tracks where the tour stops; I found this course to be a pretty fair
test.

	Golf De La Grande Bastide
	Chemin des Picholines
	Chateauneuf De Grasse - Opio
	Tel: 93.09.71.22 - 93.09.71.19

        Hole	Par	Dist		Hole	Par	Dist
	 1       4       355              10     4       310
	 2       4       325              11     4       355
         3       5       475              12     3       185
         4       4       360              13     5       515
         5       5       495              14     3       165
         6       3       140              15     4       385
         7       4       415              16     4       290
         8       4       350              17     5       460
         9       3       120              18     4       405
                                                                Par    72
        Out     36      3035              In    36      3070	Dist 6105

This is in meters, and it does make for deceiving distance! In the states
this measures approximately 6700 yards from tee to the front of the green!

Not positive about the cost anymore - 400Fr sounds right. But then again
maybe that's what I paid for dinner!

Have fun,

Eric

    Tavo,
    
    If you want to play golf in the Geneva area the best way is to rent an
    yearly memberfee. It will cost you about 2700 Dollars. 
    
    The other way is to play on fee, but apart from some golf course at 
    60 min distance from the center of Geneva by car you need to be invited 
    especially during the week-end.
                          

The January/February issue of Southern Links has an article on Southern
France. Since some may be travelling to Winter University in Opio or to
Valbonne. Oh, it looks so warm there!!

Courses listed are:

	Cannes-Mougins Golf Club, site of the European Open
	Cannes-Mandelieu
	Barbaroux Golf Club, Pete Dye, invitation only
	Golf Esterel, RT Jones
	Opio/Club Med, Cabell Robinson/RT Jones
	Valbonne Golf Club
	Monte Carlo Golf Club

I'll keep the issue on my desk for a while in case anyone would like
descriptions (I'll put in Opio and Valbonne anyway since these are likely
to be played). Anyway, it'llkeep you off the beaches ;-).

Eric

Copied from Jan/Feb issue of Southern Links:

"Near the village of Opio, amid dry, fragrant hills blanketed with wild-
flowers, pines and olive trees, rises a spectacular new Club Med where the
emphasis is on golf. Before taking on the just-opened 18 holes designed by
Cabell Robinson, I warmed up on the 9-hole executive stretch, which is the
most beautifulsmall course I've ever seen, and I've seen too many, thank you.
The lush fairways meander and roll through a bushy terrain sprinkled with
thistles, sprays of lavendar, yellow daisies and poppies. Surrounding hillsides
are a rich, intricate tapestry of vineyards, olive trees and red-tile roofs. To
see this course is to sigh.

Robinson was a long-time protege of Robert Trent Jones, therefore it is small
wonder that his impressive track has tons of water (seven lakes to be exact),
lots of big bunkers and generous fairways. The greens, sufocatingly guarded,
are small and loaded with insidious ripples and the land is sloping and bumpy.

A stupendous, very modern salmon and pink clubhouse looms above the 18th green,
but I opted to have lunch at the cozy eatery adjacent to the executive course.
Made of stone, it was one of the original buildings on this land, an
erstwhile farm that produced olive oil. While sipping a glass of superior
white wine, I noted the tastefulness of my environment. The china on the
table was embossed with golf tableaux, the walls were hung with photographic
stills-lifes of golf paraphernalia."


Sound good? Bring your sticks!

Eric

Copied from Jan/Feb issue of Southern Links:

"When I arrived at Valbonne Golf Club, a few miles down the road from Club Med,
I noticed the apricot-colored toy poodle obediently sitting by a tee on the
practive range, watching his master and mistress flailing away. 'Bon, mon
cher!' exclaimed the woman each time her husband didn't hit a grounder.

Valbonne, recently purchased by the Japanese, is in a state of transition.
The new owners are planning vast alterations on the course, which stretches out
in an isolated valley, and the construction of a nearby second track, to be
designed by Jack Nicklaus.

The hotel, a 16th century castle, is being refurbished and the pro shop
revamped. A supremely pleasant if somewhat uninspiring layout, Valbonne was
built in 1966 by English architect Donald Harradine. Of all the courses I
played on the Cote d'Azur, this one was the most public in ambience and
character.

Valbonne is compassionately lacking in bunkers and has exceptionally ample
greens and hilly, wide-open fairways, which often swerve abruptly to the
right or left. Indeed, the par 4 seventh hole is as extreme a dogleg as you'll
ever encounter. What's more, the wedge of oaks and pines that cuts into the
fairway is outlined by water."


Eric